Unspoken Wars
by sakurademonalchemist
Summary: Harry is sick of England, so when he discovers a cousin he never knew about, he jumps at the chance to leave. There's only one catch...his cousin is a Magi, and historically the two had never gotten along since the split. Harry still takes his chances, and is soon entered into a War that has gone on every couple of decades...The Grail War. Can he survive with his sanity intact?
1. Chapter 1

Harry was not a happy camper. The reason was simple enough.

Voldemort had returned, the Ministry was acting like a bloody ostrich pretending he hadn't, and Dumbledore forced him to return to Privet Drive despite the fact that the chances of the blood wards working now that the Dark Lord had his blood in him were so remote it wasn't even funny. And to make matters worse, it was clear that Hermione and Ron were adhering to a ban on any form of contact with him...probably on Dumbledore's orders to boot.

Well two can play at that game.

Hedwig hated being stuck indoors, particularly if the walls were of Privet Drive.

So Harry waited until he went on a walk while Hedwig was out 'hunting' before he called her over. The owl took the letter he had written to the goblins and vanished.

He had little doubt the old man had put watchers on him. And any magic in the area would immediately be pinned on him, which made them less than useless. Three hours later Hedwig returned, and once he read the letter he had a grim smile.

He had been watching the street from his window for a couple of days now, and he felt assured that he had the watch schedule pegged.

He had noted someone who had to be magical watching the house every four to six hours before they changed. He was reasonably sure that Mrs. Figg, the crazy old cat woman across the street, was the one who held down their base of operations.

She hadn't shown any interest in his welfare before, yet _suddenly_ she was interested in having tea with him every time she saw him. If that didn't scream suspicious, or spy, he didn't know what did.

"_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_ In response to your inquiry, we have noted several discrepancies with your account. Because of this, we have sealed your vaults until you come in person to clear up the problem. Due to your rather unfortunate living situation, we have provided a port key for you to use at your convenience. The password is 'Pegasus'._

_Please come as soon as reasonably possible._

_Keeper of the Potter Account, Broketooth."_

Harry waited patiently for his chance. When he informed his Aunt that he planned to leave early with or without the usual escort, she had been beyond thrilled. Naturally she was more than happy to help him pack his things, avoiding the windows and any view outside the house.

She had noted the watchers as well.

Once he had all the items that happened to be magical (he was rather surprised to learn that Petunia had his mother's trunk from her school years) he held onto his owl and activated the port key.

And landed unceremoniously on the stone while Hedwig admonished him for the rough trip.

"Welcome to Gringotts Mr. Potter. I am Broketooth," said the goblin.

"I hate port keys."

The goblin grinned at him, rather amused at his ruffled appearance. He lead him to a rather impressive office and pulled out a folder with the Potter family crest on it.

"Now, as per your inquiry into your account, we have noted that several vaults which should have remained inactive until you reach the age of majority have been quite active since your return to the magical communities. Upon further investigation, we have found that over 1,000,000 galleons had been withdrawn without our knowledge. We are currently in the process of finding the thieves and reclaiming the gold."

Harry had a grim look.

"I want the interest going to the goblin clans for discovering the theft."

Broketooth looked at him with surprise, then respect.

"Very well. Now onto other business. Because of your father's untimely demise, we have been unable to invest into new business. All previous businesses that your family have taken interest in have been bought, but your interest is starting to stagnate."

Harry thought over what he knew would probably boom in the future before saying "I would recommend looking into computers. And the only magical business I am reasonably sure would be a success is one that the Weasly Twins are currently trying to create. Knowing them they could buy out Zonko's if given proper start up capitol."

"I will need their account. How sure are you about their business?"

"They plan to create and sell pranks, and they are rather notorious pranksters in the school. Many of their tricks are rather popular with the students. If given a chance, there is every likelihood of them going big."

"Very well. I'll be sure to get into contact with the goblin in charge of their business account and alert them that an investor is interested. Now, is there anything else you would like to do?"

"A blood test. I don't care what Dumbledore says, I have sincere doubts that Petunia Dursley is my aunt. She looks nothing like my mother at all."

"Follow me. We'll get that sorted out right now."

Harry looked at the paper with something akin to shock...and annoyance.

Petunia wasn't even his mother's sister. She was her adopted sister! Most of the names on the paper were dead, except for one.

_Shiro Emiya_

"Is there any way to contact him? There's no way I am going back to Surrey if I can avoid it."

Broketooth looked at him. Then barked something in Goblin. Another goblin came in with a file and when he saw what it said he scowled.

"Are you sure you want to contact him? According to this he's the adopted son of a Magi."

"A _what_?"

"Magi are the more heretical side of the magical communities. Wizards avoid them whenever possible. They don't even answer to the Ministry anymore."

"I don't know what the difference is. And anything is better than going back to that house!"

"It will take a few days. In the meantime, where will you be staying?"

"I'll convert some galleons into pounds and find a hotel. Shouldn't be too hard to find in London."

"Why not the Cauldron?" asked Broketooth, curious.

"If I stayed there, then the chances of the Headmaster learning I've left Surrey are too high. He won't think to check a muggle hotel."

Harry got a reply from his previously unknown cousin a few days later. Shiro didn't mind if he came to see him. The only catch was that he lived in Japan.

Harry debated on what to do.

One on hand, he would be leaving England for an entirely different setting an ocean away. He had no idea what the restrictions on Under-age magic were, or even if he could escape before the Headmaster caught onto the fact he had left. And he didn't know a word of Japanese.

On the other hand, he would be leaving his fame behind (hopefully anyway) and starting fresh. If he was lucky, his cousin wouldn't mind letting him live with him until he turned 17 and could live on his own. As far as he was aware, the Death Eaters had never left Europe. He had checked.

He left the hotel and went to see Broketooth to get a few things. Namely a passport and something to let him speak with his new cousin. And he would be bringing his owl along. No way was he leaving Hedwig behind!

* * *

Shiro prepared one of the rooms in the main house for his cousin. He had been surprised when he got the letter in the mail informing him that a recent DNA test had found one of his relatives. He didn't even know he had any left, since no one had come forward after the fire.

According to the man on the phone, his cousin was a year or so younger than him and had asked if he had any other relatives. His name was Harry Potter, and his current address was in Surrey.

When the man asked if it was possible for his mystery cousin to meet with him in person, Shiro had told them that it was possible, since he had more than enough room.

His neighbor Taiga had been skeptical, but when her grandfather looked into the bank that had found Shiro, she learned that it was legitimate. Shiro had a living cousin. The fact his cousin was a boy as well didn't hurt either. Shiro dreaded what would have happened if it had been a girl.

That had been a week ago.

* * *

Harry got off the plane, feeling a sense of relief when he stepped foot in Japan. He had left behind his anxiety and worries the second the plane took off from the London Airport.

The only way Dumbledore could follow him was on a broom, and he would have trouble finding the plane he left on. To a wizard they all looked the same.

Plus with the world the way it was, any wizard or witch sent to retrieve him was more likely to get arrested because they acted strangely and didn't have a ticket.

It wasn't until he left the gate that he realized one problem.

He didn't know where Shiro lived.

He picked up a rather irate Hedwig, who hated cages, and freed his owl.

"Well girl, you think you can find him for me?"

She gave him a hoot and glared at him. She didn't like being cooped up for sixteen hours on a plane.

Harry grabbed a spare piece of paper and wrote his cousin's name on it, and gave it to Hedwig. His owl was smart enough to find someone on their name alone, through whatever magic allowed owls to find the letter recipients.

Harry picked up his bags (both had an expandable charm so they carried far more than people would think...like the contents of his trunks) and followed his owl through Fuyuki city.

When she stopped and started to circle a house, he knew he had found his cousin's home.

"_What the heck? What's an owl doing flying around during the day?"_ asked a male voice.

Harry grinned, and whistled sharply. Hedwig dove, and flew to his arm, then walked up to his shoulder.

A boy around his age came out from behind the gate, looking for the sound of the whistle and the owl. When he saw Harry, his eyes widened.

"_Um...who are you?"_

"Hello. I'm Harry," he said.

Seeing the look of incomprehension and confusion, he realized he hadn't activated his translation charm. He found the pin and put it on his shirt. He could feel the magic take effect.

"_Sorry about that. Forgot I wasn't in England anymore. Let me try that again. I'm Harry,"_ he said in perfect Japanese.

The teen's face brightened up.

"_Sorry if my English isn't so good. I'm Emiya Shiro."_

Harry held out his hand (the one without Hedwig sitting on his arm) and Shiro shook it.

"_Why don't you come in? I have to admit, I was surprised to learn I had a cousin who was still alive. When no one came after the Fire I assumed there wasn't anyone left,"_ said Shiro.

Harry remembered something from his book, and took off his shoes.

"_I didn't know I had any living relatives on my mother's side until I asked for a blood test myself. To be honest, coming to a country where I have never been before sounded better than spending an entire summer in Surrey. The weather there was absolutely miserable."_

"_Your Japanese is almost perfect,"_ Shiro commented.

"_When I heard what country you lived in I took a crash course for about a few months,"_ Harry lied.

"_Impressive. You must be very good with languages then. So is that your owl?"_

"_Her name is Hedwig. It's Germanic for 'Female Warrior'. It's also the name for the patron saint of brides, come to think of it."_

The two made small talk until supper, when Shiro's neighbor came around to mooch food off of him. Harry was amused more than anything with Fujimura Taiga, who was quite taken with his natural politeness. Strangely, the woman got along really well with his owl, who took a nap outside the house.

Shiro showed Harry the room he made up, which was down the hall from his own, and the two went to sleep feeling rather cheerful. Considering how it could have gone, they both felt today was a success.

* * *

Shiro woke up the next morning to the smell of cooking eggs. He assumed his friend Sakura had come over and started breakfast without him...only to be beyond shocked to find out that Harry was cooking while Sakura chopped the vegetables for him.

The two were getting along quite well, and Sakura seemed completely relaxed around his new cousin.

Though Shiro did enjoy the look of shock Taiga had when she learned that Harry had cooked breakfast this morning instead of Shiro.

Shiro got his chance to talk to his cousin while they washed dishes.

"_I have to admit, I was surprised to see you cooking this morning."_

"_I wasn't aware that I wasn't allowed to use the kitchen. I just figured you could use a breakfast you didn't have to cook yourself. Your friend seemed rather nice."_

"_No, I don't mind if you use it. It's just that the only person who I normally let in here is Sakura. Fuji-nee can't cook to save her life, and I can't count the number of times she has nearly burned down the kitchen trying."_

"_My adopted aunt made sure I knew how to cook since I was old enough to reach the stove."_

Something about that statement bothered Shiro, but he couldn't figure out what.

"_What's your aunt like?"_

"_Trust me, you don't want to know them. If I had a choice I wouldn't know of them either,"_ said Harry calmly. His tone said that he really didn't want to talk about his adopted aunt.

It only sent even more warning bells in his mind.

Since Shiro had to go to school, Harry decided to wander around Fuyuki city for a while. He had Hedwig with him so he could find his way back. When he was stopped by a police officer wanting to know why he wasn't in school, Harry's British accent had the man waving him off.

By the time the school bell rang for the day, Harry ended up running into Shiro on his way out.

"_Harry? What are you doing here?"_

"_I went exploring and ended up here when the bell rang. It's a neat school you have here."_

"_It's alright."_

Shiro and Harry walked back to the house, and Harry spoke of his own school and the friends he had. For some reason his answers made Shiro suspicious, though he couldn't figure out why Harry was hiding things about his school.

It wasn't until he was helping out at his part-time job that it occurred to him what Harry might be hiding.

There was a chance Harry was a Magus like him. If that was the case, it only made sense that he would hide details of his obviously magical school. So later, Shiro showed his cousin his workshop, and was rewarded with the confirmation that Harry did in fact know about magic.

The wall that could have sprung up between them were averted, and the two cheerfully debated magic after supper, unaware of what would happen when a Magus and a Wizard came together.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Just to be clear, the only reason this was never published as it's own story was because it quickly became a crack! fic by chapter six. I respect my fans too much to post such a thing...though I will post the chapters already done on the Drabbles to determine whether it's worth a second look.**_

* * *

Harry had been staying with Shiro for most of the summer, rather enjoying Japan and the peaceful scenery. The two of them got along rather well, both being orphans who knew about magic.

While he had no idea how Shiro's magic worked, the fact he had some form of magic meant he could share his books with the teen, who dove into them with interest. When he introduced the boy to flying on a broom (Shiro wore Harry's invisibility cloak the entire time, and was having a lot of fun flying around Fuyuki park) the two hit it off again.

Shiro, in turn, rather liked having Harry around. He had been unaware of how lonely his house had felt with no one there but him. Harry was like the younger brother he never had.

Of course things weren't entirely idyllic.

A week after Harry came to visit, several owls looking exhausted nearly crashed into his tree. Every single one had a letter on it.

Harry picked through them with a pair of tongs, knowing that direct contact would activate any hidden port keys. (He had bought a book about the items, and learned the error of his ways.) Once he opened the letters, he scowled and pulled out a lighter that had the 'incendio' charm stored in it. He burned three of the five letters without reading the other two. The flames of two were an odd color, indicating that there was magic in them. The fourth letter was from the twins, asking if he was the mystery investor who had expressed an interest in their prank shop. Included was a two-way diary so he could talk to them without using another owl. The fifth letter was from Sirius, asking if he was alright because he had dropped off the map, as it were. (It also congratulated him if he was, saying it was the funniest prank he had ever seen in a while.)

Harry wrote in the diary first, and wasn't surprised to find it answer him back immediately.

_Any Marauders there?_

_**Harry!**_

**Absolutely spiffing to hear from you old boy!**

_**You've sent Dumbledore in a right tizzy when you vanished from your house.**_

Harry snorted. Even when writing, the twins did the double speaking trick.

_Are Ron and Hermione there with you two?_

**Ron, Hermione, Sirius, Remus...a whole lot of people are here in the Order.**

_**Dumbledore brought back the Order of the Phoenix, which his response to Death Eaters back in the first war.**_

**You sent everyone panicking when they realized you weren't at your aunt's.**

_GOOD! I hated it there, and I told Dumbledore as much first year! Can you pass a message to Ron and Hermione?_

**Absolutely old chap! Just one question...**

_Yes, I am the mystery investor. Meet with the goblin in charge of my account, and when he asked if I wanted to invest in a business in the magical communities the first thing that came to mind was your joke shop. I figured you could use the extra help._

_**Thanks for that. We've been able to get some hard to find ingredients for our pranks because of the extra cash in our vault.**_

_Now, can you tell Ron and Hermione not to bother writing to me? After their little information blackout I'm really not in the mood to talk to them._

_**It was Dumbledore's idea. He even got Mum to screen their letters.**_

_Figures. That reminds me, I found family! Apparently I have a cousin on my mother's side._

**Congrats! What's his name?**

_I don't know if it's a good idea to tell you. His name alone might tip off the old goat as to where I am. It's pretty easy to find a country of origin simply through a name, and I'm fairly sure Dumbledore can read minds._

_**You don't think he would do that to us to get to you, do you?**_

_Did your mother ever tell him about the bars on my window second year?_

_**She complained about it, yes.**_

_Do you really think he cares whether or not it's okay to look into other people's mind when he keeps sending me back to that house despite the fact I've complained about the Dursleys since first year? The second I found out I had an actual cousin, I was gone._

**...When you put it that way, we see your point. Any message for Sirius?**

Harry had a mischievous idea, as he wrote back.

_Tell Padfoot and Moony I'm fine and I might come back for school next year. I rather like this country, and I know they have magical training here, since my cousin definitely has magic of his own._

He could see the looks on their faces as they read that.

_**YOU KNOW WHO PADFOOT AND MOONY ARE?!**_

**Tell us!**

_I thought you knew. Padfoot and Moony are Sirius and Remus._

He could just imagine the look of shock on their faces...followed by a devious grin as they processed that information.

**We'll be sure to tell them! After we're done bowing and pleading for guidance from the Great Marauders.**

_Be sure to tell them I was the one to inform you! And take pictures!_

_**Talk to you later Harry.**_

**We're off to pester the Marauders!**

Harry laughed, as he could easily imagine the look of horror on Remus' face when he found out someone told the twins he was Moony. Sirius wouldn't care, but he would understand why Harry wouldn't say where he was.

He knew what it was like to be imprisoned for no good reason.

"_So what were you writing?"_

"_I was chatting with a pair of mischievous twins I know. This is a two-way diary that they sent. They were telling me what was going on back in England."_

"_Why did you burn the others though?"_

"_They didn't send me a single letter all summer, yet when I leave England all of a sudden they think I would accept being chastised for not telling them I was going on vacation? They really should have known better."_

Shiro had to admit, he had a good point. If they didn't care to send him letters all summer, then what made them think he would actually care to read ones that complained he had left the country? And to find family he didn't know he had?

"_So what was the devious smirk for?"_

"_That? That was exposing my surrogate uncles on my dad's side to the twins. They were known as pranking legends in their day, and the twins idolize them. For some reason they didn't want the twins to know that they were their idols. I can just see Moony's face when he finds out I told them."_

"_What kind of person names their kid Moony?"_

"_Actually it's a nickname. Remus is called Moony because he's a werewolf, and Sirius is called Padfoot because he can turn into a dog. Because of how big it is and the coloring, he's often mistaken for the Grim."_

"_...Werewolves are real?"_

"_Yes, but other than the nights of the full moon, they are perfectly harmless. Unfortunately most don't see it that way and treat them like they're evil because of something they can't control."_

"_That doesn't sound right at all."_

"_I agree. So what's on the agenda today?"_

"_Today's Sunday, so I was thinking we could hit the bookstore or something. Want to flip for who makes dinner later?"_

"_Sure!"_

* * *

It was all out chaos in the Order of the Phoenix. Ever since Harry went missing from his aunt's, Dumbledore had been sending the others out looking around the clock. There wasn't hide nor hair of the boy.

Then the twins were finally told that Remus and Sirius are really Padfoot and Moony (Ron and Hermione quickly claim their innocence of informing the two) and the boys immediately start stalking the former Marauders.

It wasn't until Sirius finally caved that he found out that his godson was long since out of the country and with a cousin he most likely found through the goblins.

Harry never said the cousin's name, so it was impossible to track him that way. And the goblins were strangely reluctant to assist them in the matter. Since Harry wasn't in Europe, it was impossible to find him through his wand, because the tracers only covered Europe. If he was in America or Asia, then they wouldn't be able to find him at all.

Finally, when Voldemort was informed of the fact Harry was missing, Dumbledore had enough.

He called Fawkes over from his perch and told him to find Harry. If he did, then he was to bring him back immediately. The boy had had his fun, but with Voldemort's return he was in grave danger.

* * *

Harry finished his letter to the Ministry, requesting to become an At-Home student. After thinking it over, he had decided to pull out of Hogwarts.

Seeing Shiro's reaction to his previous years had Harry reevaluating his schooling. His conclusion was that Hogwarts was simply too dangerous for him to stay there, and with the Ministry smear campaign (the goblins had given him a few issues of last month's _Daily Prophet_ while he was there) it was unlikely he would enjoy his fifth year.

Besides, he rather liked hanging out with Shiro, and it would be nice to catch up on his muggle education.

Hedwig took the letter and was off before lunch.

"_Who were you writing to?" _asked Shiro.

"_I was writing a letter to the Ministry asking to become an at-home student. Frankly I would rather stay here and join you in high school than go back and deal with that mess."_

"_What Ministry?"_

Harry blinked.

"_The Ministry of Magic? The ruling government for wizards?"_

"_I've never heard of it. The only ruling body for magic users is the Magus Association."_

Harry paused, then face-palmed.

"_I completely forgot we came from two different branches of magic."_

"_Huh?"_

"_Shiro, I'm not a Magus. I'm a wizard. Unlike you I can't cast magic without a focus, specifically my wand."_

Shiro blinked. He didn't know that.

"_Then are we even allowed to share our magic with each other?"_

"_I don't know. As far as I know, the Statute of Secrecy says that you can't tell normal people about magic or you would get your wand snapped. Since you do know about magic, even if it's a different branch, I have no idea if that covers it. Until we know for sure, let's just keep operating on the basis that we're allowed to pool our knowledge about magic together."_

"_I didn't even know about there being other schools of magic. The Magus Association doesn't like it if non-magical people find out, and we have to either kill or erase the memories of those who find out unless the person is given permission."_

"_If nothing else, I can have the twins ask Sirius or Remus. Sirius might know."_

"_Until then, what do you feel like for supper?"_

"_Miso sounds fine to me,"_ said Harry.

Hedwig returned with a letter from the Ministry, confirming the fact that Harry had opted to pull out of Hogwarts for the year and act as a stay-at-home student. He was surprised to learn that by doing so he had been given permission to practice magic outside school, within reasonable limits and out of sight of muggles.

It further went to give him a list of tutors and books he could purchase to help his studies.

Their neighbor Taiga helped Harry catch up on his missing school years, and it wasn't long before he was transferred into Shiro's homeroom class.

* * *

"_Hello, my name is Potter Harry. I hope we can become friends!"_ he said.

Taiga let him sit next to Shiro, since that way his cousin could help him with his homework. By lunch he was practically accosted by the other students, eager to learn about the new kid from England.

While the attention bothered him, he had to admit it was rather refreshing.

No Dudley to scare people away, no unwanted fame to put pressures on his back, and best of all no Malfoy to ruin his day!

He should have left England years ago.

* * *

Dumbledore read the notice from the Ministry and suppressed a growl. The boy had done one of the many things he should have been able to prevent.

He had resigned from Hogwarts for a year to learn magic abroad. Something he had hoped to avoid since it put the boy out of his grasp! He had though the blood wards would have prevented him from entering Gringotts, but had missed one key point.

The boy had taken a port key activated by his own magic, bypassing the wards. He had thought the horse faced woman would have kept such an item out of his grasp.

He would have to retrieve Harry another way. Fawkes had been unable to find the boy at all, which was odd. The only thing that could confuse a phoenix was a massive amount of natural magic...or a Magi barrier. And Magi hated wizards with a passion.

It was because of that fact that Dumbledore had overlooked one important fact. If Harry found a Magi who tolerated wizards to the point of actually speaking to him, then he would be completely safe from any manipulations or attempts by Dumbledore.

But the odds of finding one were so phenomenally high that it was ridiculous to even consider. Especially with the ban on anything to do with Wizards from the Clock Tower...

* * *

Rin Tohsaka had a problem. And his name was Harry Potter.

The second she saw him and the stick he had in his bag, she knew what he was.

A mere wizard had dared to enter _her_ school! Which meant he had to be living in her territory! That was something she couldn't stand, since it was known wizards were arrogant jerks who hated anything not human or pure magical.

So when Harry opts to eat on the roof without his cousin (and Fujimura-sensei confirmed the two were in fact cousins) Rin decides to pounce.

She was going to lay down the laws for this upstart who dared to intrude in her space.

* * *

Harry didn't even turn when the door opened, but when he felt the build up of magic behind him he took notice rather fast. He certainly wasn't expecting an irate witch though.

"_What the hell do you think you're doing in my territory, wizard?"_

"_Huh?"_

"_Don't try to play innocent pal! I saw your wand earlier! What's a wizard doing in Magi territory?"_

Harry's eyes widened owlishly. The goblins had mentioned wizards didn't like Magi, but he didn't know it went both ways.

"_What's your problem? I haven't done anything to bother you. Hell, I don't even _know_ you!" _he protested.

"_My name is Tohsaka Rin, and this half of Fuyuki city is under the jurisdiction of my family! Just what do you think you're doing here?"_ she demanded.

Harry blinked. That's what she was so upset about? Because he had come into her place without her knowing?

"_I've been here for two months and I haven't bothered anyone. Why do you care about me living here anyway? I've never even met you before you stormed up here!"_

"_Everyone knows wizards are arrogant jerks who think they can lord over anyone who isn't from a purely magical family."_

"_You do realize that's exactly how _you're_ acting right now right? Like a pure blood?"_

Rin blinked. She hadn't noticed that. And the way he said pure blood triggered her mind.

"_You're a wizard, right?"_

"_Yes, I'm a wizard, but I'm not a pure blood like you assume. I'm half and half. My mother was a muggleborn and my dad was a pure blood. I have nothing against normal people OR Magi. I wasn't planning on bothering anyone when you came up and started yelling at me."_

Rin realized her mistake. Half bloods weren't nearly as bad as pure bloods, unless they were from a pure blood household.

"_Then what are you doing in Fuyuki City?"_

"_Escaping England. I was tired of being treated like a specimen under a microscope, so when I found out about my cousin I came here. Shiro didn't care if I stayed with him, and I wasn't aware of any Magi territories until you came here."_

"_Just watch your step, wizard. If I catch you doing anything, I'll be on your ass so fast you won't have time to blink!"_

"_O-kay...?"_

The rest of the day was rather normal compared to that.


	3. Chapter 3

Sirius read the diary with something akin to shock.

Harry's cousin...was a Magus. And one who lived in the territory of another Magus who was aware that Harry was a wizard. Harry had managed to get the girl off his back, but now she was watching him and by extension his cousin.

Magi and Wizards hadn't gotten along since the Dark Ages, when Magi moved with the times...and wizards stayed the same. The fights between the two groups got so bad that all out war was about to break out until someone came up with the idea of splitting the two completely.

Every since then, a tenuous peace had been kept, but only just.

And now his godson was living with a Magus who was unaware of the fact that the two groups hated each other with a passion. Of all the things that could have happened, that was one thing he never expected to.

He had few options at this point.

He could stay behind the wards of Grimmauld place and slowly die inside each day. He could tell Dumbledore where the boy was and allow him to bring Harry back to England away from the Magi. Or, and this was what he was leaning heavily on at this point, he could leave England and join Harry and his cousin to teach them both magic.

The Black family had a few Magi tomes from raids after they had killed the Magi in question. One of the Black family mottos was to never throw away anything magical. You never knew when it could come in handy. One of the books even said how to create magic circuits, like the Magi used.

With Hogwarts starting up again, Dumbledore would make fewer appearances. He couldn't leave the school with the teacher the Ministry was forcing on them. That was just asking for trouble.

And the only person who was liable to even notice what he was doing was Remus. With all the rows between Sirius and Dumbledore over being let out, everyone mostly avoided him.

He couldn't honestly claim to even contribute to the Order anymore.

After the third month Harry had left England, Sirius made up his mind after a particularly snide remark from Snape about how he was less than useless because of his status as a convict.

He was going to find Harry and teach the boys magic. With the books he had, he would be of more use there than he was in the Order. He would leave the diary to Remus in case the man wanted to join them.

* * *

Harry read the words on the page in disbelief.

"_What's up?"_

"_Sirius, he wants to know if it's alright to stay here, since he's been stuck doing nothing in England. He said he has some books that might help us learn magic."_

"_Are you sure? I thought your wand wouldn't respond to me?"_

"_According to him, his family has a few books on Magus magic, since they had a few...disagreements with them in the past and raided the houses after. One of them mentions magical circuits."_

Shiro's eyes widened. He had never really gotten the hang of magical circuits, and had resorted to using his nerves instead.

"_Well we do have a lot of space here..."_

"_I don't know if he can cook or not."_

"_Better not chance it. Who knows, he might hit it off with Fuji-nee."_

* * *

Sirius arrived at the Emiya estate in his canine form, which had Shiro looking at him with misgivings until he became human again.

"_It was a real pain sneaking onto that aero plane thingy."_

"_They're called airplanes, not aero planes."_

"_So where's this cousin of yours?"_

"_He's right in front of you,"_ said Harry with amusement.

Sirius held out his hand, and Shiro shook it without question.

"_Sirius Black."_

"_Emiya Shiro."_

Sirius pulled out a few books and finally found the one he wanted. After casting a minor translation charm on it, he handed it to Shiro.

_Everything You Need to Know About Magic Circuits, and What NOT to Do._

Shiro soon started to read the book...before banging his head on the table in disbelief.

Apparently he had gone about it all wrong for years and didn't think to ask his father about it. Fortunately he was still young enough to access them properly...but they would be slightly diminished because he hadn't known how to use them correctly.

The only real issue with Sirius' arrival came when Tohsaka confronted him. Apparently she had noticed the new wizard in her area and wasn't pleased about it.

* * *

"_I can tolerate you being here, you rarely do anything to annoy me. But I will not allow more of you walking around like you own the place!"_

"_Just out of curiosity, what does your family's magical crest look like?"_

The question threw Rin for a loop, before she said hotly _"What's it to you what it looks like?"_

"_My godfather mentioned that one of the families his ancestors raided was called Tohsaka. Or at least sounded like it anyway. They have a weird crest like shape on the back of the books and I was curious if it was your family."_

Rin blinked. A hundred years ago her family _was_ attacked by wizards, which was part of the reason she hated them so much. So she drew a rough outline of what her magical crest looked like. Harry nodded in satisfaction.

"_I think we have some books that belong to you. I can bring them to school tomorrow if you want. We don't have any real use for them since they're too advanced for us. We couldn't make heads or tails of them."_

"_Bring them here two hours before school. If they are from my family I want them back,"_ said Rin.

* * *

The next morning Harry showed up two hours early and he had the books with him. Rin took one look at the crests on the back and her jaw dropped in absolute shock. He had several missing magical tomes and notes from her ancestors which were thought destroyed.

"_What do you want in exchange for these?"_

She wasn't a fool. He had to want something if he was giving these back.

"_You're pretty good at Magi-style magic right?"_

"_Yes. What of it?"_

"_My cousin Shiro is relearning how to use his magical circuits. Unfortunately we barely know anything about how to use them or cast your kind of spells. How about in exchange for returning your family books you help him out?"_

"_Am I allowed to boss him around?"_ she asked.

"_So long as you don't go overboard. He really wasn't able to learn much from his dad before he passed away."_

"_What was his father's name?"_

"_Kiritsugu Emiya."_

Rin's jaw dropped again. Shiro was the son of the Magus Killer?!

"_You have a deal!"_

* * *

Shiro was less than happy that Harry had made a deal involving him. However when he learned why Harry did it, he admitted the younger boy had a point. Without a decent teacher Shiro would get nowhere fast. He barely ranked apprentice level when it came to magic as it was.

Tohsaka had been horrified to learn he had used his nerves as magic circuits for years. At least he had found the problem and took steps to correct it. She was less than impressed with Sirius Black, but they had reached an agreement.

They would ignore each other in exchange for Sirius not doing anything that would anger her, since it was technically _her_ territory.

He still had a good laugh at the way Tohsaka bossed Shiro around when it came to magic. Apparently returning the books had brought them into her good graces, which had tipped the scales in their favor.

So long as she allowed them to live there, the Ministry and the Magus Association couldn't touch them. That meant they couldn't send any Aurors to try and arrest Sirius, and dementors would be met with extreme prejudice.

If he had known that before, Sirius would have bartered with a friendly Magus a hell of a lot sooner.

If anything, by joining forces with the Tohsaka heir, Harry gained a distinct advantage over Voldemort and the Ministry. Since Shiro wasn't about to suffer alone under the girl's exacting standards, he convinced the Magus to unlock Harry's circuits as well.

She honestly didn't see a problem with it, since it meant she could torture Harry under the guise of training him in magic. Sirius was too old for it, but he could still laugh at the boy's suffering.

However Harry ended up surprising both of the more experienced Magi. Once he was told how to use the circuits Rin awoke in him (which hurt like a bitch but he didn't cry out that much, barely a whimper according to a surprised Sirius) he ended up taking to it like a duck to water.

He was better than Shiro was, which somewhat annoyed his cousin.

Rin quickly figured out what Harry's element was, once she studied his prana. His Element was Wind. Since Sirius began Harry's animagus training, Harry was soon about to start the transformation process.

Apparently his Element influenced his animal form, because Harry was something with wings and feathers.

He would almost say it was a dragon, except he had never heard of a dragon that had feathers on it's wings.

* * *

As Shiro lay in his futon, he thought back to when his life changed again. And it all started when his cousin first found him. Harry had changed a lot of things in Shiro's life, and he could honestly say he preferred the chaos that it had become to the way it was before.

Harry had livened up his home, and made things more interesting. He had never dismissed Shiro's dream to help others, in fact he was more interested in _helping_ Shiro accomplish that dream. When asked, Harry mentioned that a friend had once said he had a 'saving people' complex.

They were so alike that it was scary sometimes. The two of them just clicked. And Shiro couldn't help but think his adopted father would have liked Harry too.

Another thing was that Harry often went out of his way to help Sakura with her brother Shinji. Some days, Shiro wondered why he was even friends with the boy, since he was a bit of an ass.

But what Shiro loved the most was that Harry shared his ability and passion for magic. It wasn't until they both realized they were from two different schools that they hit a snag, but even that was overcome because they didn't hate each other or think the other way was wrong. Harry loved magic purely for it's own sake. He didn't think magic circuits were bad, just different. The only thing he didn't like were the Unforgivables from wizard's magic, and that because they were so easily abused.

Hell, thanks to Harry, Shiro finally found out what he had been doing wrong with his magic and he had finally gotten past reinforcement.

When Sirius showed up, things livened up even more. Fuji-nee kept shooting him speculative glances occasionally. Because of the two wizards in his home, he finally felt like something that had been missing since his dad died fall back into place.

It was like he was living with a family again. Harry and Sirius never asked for anything but a place to stay and someone to talk to. And after a while, they really grew on him. So much so that he was having trouble remembering how lonely it was after Kiritsugu died.

As Shiro lay there, thinking about how things had changed for the better, he couldn't help but fall asleep with a grin on his face.

* * *

_Time Skip One year, Six Months, and Two weeks..._

In the past year, few things had changed as much as life in Shiro's house. For starters Sirius was dating Taiga, who apparently had a thing for older men. The fact the man was slightly over thirty helped a bit with her grandfather and her family.

Another thing that had changed was that Remus, Harry's other uncle and known werewolf, came to visit and ended up staying. All he had to do to earn approval from Rin was debate magic with the girl. Because of the fact he was a werewolf, he sometimes came into contact with Magi and knew a bit more than Sirius had when he first arrived. Aside from those three, no other wizards dared come that deep into known Magus territory.

Thanks in part to Rin, Harry was now a registered animagus and he had come far into his attempts at using magical circuits instead of wands. As long as he passed the Ministry exams, they could care less what sort of magic he studied.

Rin had finally managed to figure out what his origin was, and to be blunt it had shocked her at the time.

Harry's origin was Magic, plain and simple. It certainly explained how he was able to handle the strain of learning both wand and circuit based magic without blowing his core out like Sirius initially had feared.

Because of her teachings, both Shiro and Harry could competently be called Magi, though they still ranked at apprentice level. Their debates, on the other hand, went up to actual Magi level.

Sirius had called his godson a misplaced Ravenclaw when he first heard him debating a particular style of magic with Rin.

Another change was that Sakura had accidentally revealed to be a fellow Magi one night when Harry caught her reading a book with an odd crest that Rin only barely recognized.

He later learned it belonged to the family she was adopted into. After that, she started to come around more often and stayed over nights debating with Rin and the others.

Harry could tell Rin appreciated the chance to see her sister. Even if it annoyed Shinji to no end when Harry unofficially banned the boy from ever returning.

When asked by Shiro, all Harry would say was that Shinji was the Magi equivalent of a Malfoy, and a particularly annoying one at that.

The Emiya household had become something of a school for magic for those who could use it. Having teachers like Rin and Remus really helped those who lived there progress farther than they would have on their own. Though Taiga was the only one kept out of the loop.

To Sakura, the Emiya household was a safe haven from her family. To Rin, it was a place to chat with her peers and to debate magic without having to worry about offending the others too much. To Sirius it was a place to get to know his godson, who's life he missed out of. To Remus, it was a home that accepted everything about him, good and bad. To Harry, it was the chance to actually live his life the way he wanted, not how others dictated it.

But to Shiro, the house had become more than just a house. It had become a real home, something that had been missing since Kiritsugu died. Everyone treated the others civilly and with respect, yet they acknowledge the others privacy.

No one had ever entered his workshop without asking. And that was something he took pleasure in.


	4. Chapter 4

Rin bounced up to Harry with a pleased glint in her eye.

"What happened and why do you scare me right now?" he asked. In the year that he had been here, he had helped Shiro, Rin and Sakura learn English to the point that they could speak it properly. As a result, everyone in the Emiya house could speak two languages.

On the plus side, their grades in English had never been higher.

"Thanks to you, I got my family crest a year early! I don't have to deal with that damn priest anymore!"

"Uh, what?"

Rin gave him a look.

"I was still apprenticing under a priest who knew my father until I could pass a few exams. As a result, I didn't have access to my family crest that my father had. I was supposed to get it next year under the usual time table, but because of our little study and discussion group I was able to pass them anyway."

"Congratulations, I guess."

"You do realize what this means don't you?"

"Not particularly, other than you're now allowed to cast without anyone to hold you hand."

"It means that even if the Magus Association finds out you've been living in my territory, they can't do a thing about it. That half of Fuyuki is officially under my purview."

"Wait, so you mean the Ministry now can't go through that priest to get to us?"

"Exactly!"

"Sweet. Does this mean you want to abandon our little discussion group?"

"Not on your life Potter! Do you know how hard it is to find someone willing to talk to me about that and not act like complete and utter pricks? Hell, most of Clock Tower is like that, and if they ever learned I let you stay and even shared spells with you they would look down on me!"

"Frankly I think Clock Tower is only slightly better than Hogwarts. At least there learning isn't completely restricted."

"Whereas Hogwarts is so backwards it's pathetic."

"Agreed."

* * *

Rin was so pleased about getting her family crest she almost missed the odd feeling in the air. It wasn't until she paused and actually felt for it that she recognized it.

It had been ten years since she felt it, but she could recall that feeling quite well. It was the same one that killed her father.

The Grail Wars, which weren't supposed to start for another fifty years, had started again.

She was torn between what to do. On one hand, she would undoubtedly have to join to have any say in what would happen. On the other, she would probably be unable to have her usual discussions with the others. She didn't want to drag them into the War between Seven Servants.

Though knowing her luck, Shiro and Harry would be dragged in whether they wanted to or not. At least she would have some back up.

She still remembered Kotomine's disbelieving expression when he found out that not only was she allowing three wizards from Hogwarts to stay in her territory, but that she often went to an apprentice Magi's house in order to have some very in-depth discussions on magic in general. She still had a picture of his face in her scrapbook.

From what she could tell, only one servant had been summoned. From the feel alone she guessed it was berserker.

She was halfway to Shiro's house when she noticed a woman who was definitely Irish walking past her in the street.

She had a case in her hand that looked very suspicious...and after sensing Berserker she had a feeling the woman was there to summon a servant.

If she was right, then chances were that she was going to the church since it was neutral territory to do it. Rin thought about what Shiro and Harry would do and made up her mind before she realized she was halfway across the street.

"Excuse me," she said in English.

The woman turned, and gave her an odd look.

"If you're heading to the church, then I would recommend summoning your Servant somewhere else. The Priest in charge of the church is such a weasel he might stab you in the back."

"How did you...? Who are you?"

"I'm Tohsaka Rin, the Magus in charge of this district. And I just felt Berserker being summoned."

Bazett looked at her in surprise. The girl had taken a leap of faith and guessed correctly that she was a fellow Magus.

"How on Earth did you know I'm a Magus?"

"You are clearly Irish, and the only foreigners around here are British. Even then they made sure to alert me when they entered my territory. It was pretty obvious after Berserker was just summoned that you are here for the War."

Bazett couldn't fault her reasoning. A foreigner in Magus territory after a summoning was pretty suspicious.

"So how do you know about the Priest?"

"He was my magic teacher until recently. I don't trust him at all, and you really shouldn't. I wouldn't put it past him to try and steal your Servant, since he was in the previous one."

"Do you know of anywhere else I could summon him?"

"Actually, I do. Luckily they all know about magic and they speak English."

If Bazett was shocked by Rin actually warning her from the church, she was floored by the simple fact of who she was going to meet.

She thought the girl had allowed some fellow Magi to live in her territory in exchange for a bribe. She certainly didn't expect three wizards there!

"Yo, Rin! Who's this?" asked the black haired teen.

"Another Magus. I'm fairly sure the Grail Wars have started up again."

"Grail Wars? You mean that battle royale with the Seven Servants you mentioned? I thought it wasn't supposed to start up for a few more decades," said the boy.

"Berserker was just summoned. And I'm not about to let someone go to the church with that weasel in charge," she said hotly.

"Don't blame ya at all. That place gives me the creeps. You can feel the Dark magic coming off of it," shuddered the older man.

"What's with her?" asked the other man, a tawny haired gentleman she was almost sure was a werewolf by his eyes.

"Don't you remember Remus? Magi and Wizards don't normally get along. She's probably in shock," said the boy amused.

"How...? How is this possible?" she asked in disbelief.

"You want to hear the long version or the short?" quipped the boy. Rin slapped him on the head absentmindedly.

"Long version. I can always bring Lancer out tomorrow night and I have the feeling this story is worth waiting," said Bazett.

Hell, with a tale like this she wouldn't have to pay for drinks with her fellow Enforcers for a year at least!

"Well it starts like this..." said the boy.

By the time Harry finished explaining how he had originally left London to find his cousin who he had never even met, Shiro had started supper. Sakura had come by earlier and was helping him. She didn't even bat an eye to the fact that another Magus had come to Fuyuki.

Her grandfather had felt Berserker's appearance just as Rin had earlier.

Bazett was in absolute shock as Harry told her about making the deal with Rin...of course said girl snarkily added she originally had allowed them to stay mostly because Harry helped her acquire jewels for her families craft.

By the time supper was done, (in which they had to postpone because of Taiga coming over to mooch off food) Harry got to the point where Sirius came over and started to help them learn magic.

When he finally finished, she was naturally impressed.

She first looked at Rin and said "You know most Magi wouldn't let a wizard into their territory in the first place."

"I didn't even know he was there until I saw his wand at school. I confronted him and he presented an argument I couldn't win, so I let him off. As long as he didn't do anything to cause me trouble, I didn't feel like chasing him out. When the second one showed up, he bargained for both of them with some books Black had in his family library that belonged to my ancestors. When Remus showed up Harry convinced me to let _him_ stay with a line to the goblins and as many jewels from their family vaults as I needed. Considering how much I would have had to pay to buy the same quality I naturally accepted."

"Plus it gave you two new errand boys to push around," said Harry playfully.

Bazett looked at him owlishly.

"Wait...do you mean..."

"Harry here has an element of Wind and an Origin of Magic. He can use both wand and circuits to cast. And it took us ages to figure out why Shiro was having such problems with his... Honestly having an Element and Origin like that..." said Rin.

"You mean to tell me...that a _wizard_ is able to use magic circuits and hasn't been throwing a fit?" she said incredulous.

"I'm not normal," said Harry dryly.

"You kidding? I still can't wait to see the Ministry's face when they find out he's willingly learning to use circuits like a Magus! The press is going to flip when they find out the boy-who-lived is breaching the unspoken agreement between the magic classes!" said Sirius grinning.

Bazett could only do one thing when her mind processed that information. She passed out from shock.

The boy-who-lived, the Wizard's golden boy who defeated a dark lord...learning how to become a Magus. She would never have to pay for her drinks again with a tale like that!

Remus lightly poked Bazett, and said with clear amusement "I think we broke her."

Sirius levitated the woman and her case to one of the spare bedrooms. When she woke up she would hope it was all a dream, before she found out the hard way it wasn't.

Still, since Harry was in the jurisdiction of a Magus and following the guidelines of both sets, she didn't have to do a thing.

There wasn't any rule stating you couldn't learn both sets of magic after all.

* * *

Since they were interested in Lancer, and they were all magical, she summoned her Servant with Shiro's permission in the back yard where the neighbors wouldn't see.

Sirius and Remus had gone over the yard and found Kiritsugu had placed an interesting ward around the perimeter of his house. With Shiro's permission, they expanded on it while leaving the original in place.

And since it was Magus territory, they didn't have to worry about the Ministry bothering them for placing such heavy duty wards around a muggle neighborhood so long as the Magus in charge of the area didn't care.

Rin actually helped them with the runes, since she had a few books she wanted to try out and it was a lesson on magic that everyone would enjoy.

Now the Emiya house was almost as secure as Rin's home, though they had to leave a few wards out because they didn't want to alert the other neighbors that something was amiss about the house.

As far as Taiga was concerned, they were doodling old runes to bring good luck to the house.

It had the added benefit of having the Mafia family next door overlook odd lights, since they admitted they often set off fireworks in the backyard.

They just thought Sirius was a pyro and left it at that.

Bazett finished the ritual, and with a crash Lancer appeared.

He shouldered his red spear and looked at her.

"Are you my master?"

She held up her left hand, showing the Command Mantra.

"I am."

"Servant Lancer, at yer service," he said with a grin.

"Huh...so that's a Servant. If I didn't know any better I would swear he was Irish," said Sirius.

Lancer was a bit surprised by the audience, but said nothing. It was pretty clear he was in a magical household and the war hadn't really started.

Besides, the rules only said to kill witnesses if they saw him fighting another Servant.

"He is Irish," said Bazett.

"Oh good. Anyone in the mood for some whiskey?" asked Sirius with a grin.

"I am not cleaning up your mess again Sirius. Not after last time!" said Harry.

"Seconded!" said Shiro.

"Third!" said Remus.

Rin growled. By process of deduction that left her or Sakura, and Sakura had already gone home.

Lancer grinned at Sirius.

"You're my kinda guy! Bring on the booze!"

Bazett groaned and face palmed. At least she got the one she wanted. She and Rin left the house for a bit.

She went to the church with Rin, and left feeling like something was horribly wrong about that place. Now more than ever she was glad that she had taken the girl's offer to meet with her friends. She had left Lancer with Sirius as they left to get drunk. The Irish hero fell in love with the fire whiskey the man had, and they got along very well.

Too well in her opinion.

* * *

"How interesting. The Irish Enforcer has already summoned Lancer..." said Kotomine.

"Yeah, and she did it in a place where we can't get to him," said a voice from behind.

A youth with golden hair and arrogant attitude came up from behind him.

"The best laid plans of mice and men," said Kotomine.

"Whatever. What are we going to do now? Thanks to that girlie of yours, we missed getting Lancer. And I doubt any of the others would be willing to summon their Servant here. Not if she's keeping an eye out for foreigners."

"Ah, but you are forgetting something. Not all the Servants have been summoned yet. If need be we can give the Command Mantra to young Shinji."

Gil grimaced. He disliked the Matou heir, because the kid was a slimy brat who had no sense of taste.

He had run into the wizard kid who had bargained his way into Rin's good graces once, and the kid reminded him far too much of Arturia. And it wasn't because of the British accent either.

Still, he did show the respect that he deserved, which was more than most people did until he whipped out his Noble Phantasm to scare them.

That was more than enough to get his interest.

* * *

Bazett was surprised when Shiro offered the use of his spare guest house. It wasn't like it got much use outside of the times Rin or Sakura stayed the night over. And since they were well used to people casting magic in the back, she didn't have to hide what she was doing.

Considering she had come to Fuyuki fully expecting to have to pay for a hotel to sleep in until the war was over, this was more than she had hoped for.

In fact the only thing Shiro asked for was that she share her knowledge on magic with them. Considering Bazett was naturally curious about how a trio of wizards managed to stay in the good graces of a Magus, she agreed.

Besides, as the Tohsaka girl pointed out, the chances of them becoming involved in the war one war or another were very high indeed. Harry had already expressed an interest in trying his hand at Summoning.

Bazett still couldn't figure out how three wizards managed to get in the good graces of a Magus. Or why they were so accepting of the youngest having a cousin who was a Magus.

The situation was so damn bizarre that she couldn't help but want to see how it would turn out.

Besides, it nice to hear English spoken in accent she could recognize so far from home.


	5. Chapter 5

"You got everything ready Harry?" asked Rin.

"Yes mother..." he muttered. She had asked him that four times now.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Nothing Rin. So which one should I shoot for?"

"Berserker, Lancer and Caster are already out, so don't bother for them. I want to try and get Saber, so that leaves Archer, Rider and Assassin."

"Archer or Rider sounds good."

"Either way, we will be teaming up once you succeed," said Rin.

"Yes Rin. Like I would dare to double cross you after you've let us live here in peace for all this time. I'm not an idiot."

"Just as long as you remember," she said sweetly.

Harry shuddered at her tone. Every time she used that tone, a world of pain opened up for Shiro and Harry.

Harry shook himself to get his head back in the game. It was midnight, which was apparently the same hour he was born according to Sirius, and that made it the optimum time for him to summon a Servant. The circle was ready, and all he needed to do was actually cast the spell.

"_**Hear me.**_

_**Place thy flesh under my command. **_

_**My fate, I place on thy sword.**_

_**On the authority of the Holy Grail,**_

_**and thou comply to my will and my reasoning, answer my call.**_

_**Here and now, I offer up my pledge.**_

_**I am he who embodies the virtue of all creation.**_

_**I am he who shall spread the evils of all creation.**_

_**Thou art the seven heavens clad in the three great word spirits.**_

_**Come forth from this binding circle, thou keeper of the balance!"**_

The red circle flared with prana and magic. His unique status as both an apprentice Magus and a sixth year wizard meant he had a skill set few could hope to match.

There was a reason why Rin wanted him to partner with her. Between the two of them, the chances of actually winning the War shot up exponentially.

It also didn't hurt that after seeing his practical exams for the OWLs (which Dumbledore couldn't interfere because he was technically under Clock Tower's jurisdiction after Rin was through with him) the visiting proctors from the Ministry were so impressed that they offered to let him sit through his NEWTs a year early.

Which he did, last week and came out in flying colors.

Now he could practice magic without anyone from the Ministry bothering him unless it was in view of normal people.

Plus it had the added bonus of removing him completely from Hogwarts and annoying Hermione with her extreme study habits.

He really wanted to know who would win in a fight, Rin or Hermione. He just didn't want to strain his already precarious friendship with Rin to find out...

"Are you my Master?" asked a voice.

Harry looked and found the source. It was a woman with a covering over her eyes and an extremely provocative outfit. Her hair was purple and long.

Harry looked at his new Command Mantra, which funny enough was a wing with three segments, each smaller than the last.

"I am."

"Servant Rider, at your command."

"Hello Rider, call me Harry."

Rider stood up and followed him into the house. Lancer nearly spat out his tea (which was real Irish, to his amusement and pleasure) when he saw Rider. Rider tensed as well, but seeing Harry acting unconcerned kept the violence from breaking out.

Shiro had long since set up a simple rule for the Servants and Masters who either lived there or visited.

If you want to fight, take it outside the neighborhood. This was neutral territory unless you want to deal with him.

Lancer agreed to it, since it meant he could go all out on anyone stupid enough to attack the house. It also meant any Servants who stayed there would team up with him if such a thing happened.

"Shiro, meet Rider. Rider, this is my cousin Shiro. The idiot trying to keep his tongue in his mouth is my godfather Sirius, the werewolf reading by the TV is my uncle Remus, and as you already know that is Lancer. Bazett should be back with some groceries along with Rin and Sakura soon enough. Would you like to go over the basic rules of the house now or later?"

"Now will be fine."

"Rule one is simple enough. Wizard or Magus, everyone is treated civilly in the house, or they get kicked out and not allowed back for a month at least. Rule two, if you can't cook, you aren't allowed in the kitchen. Shiro doesn't like it when the house nearly burns down by someone attempting to cook...and failing. Rule three, no one is allowed to fight within a mile of the house, Grail War or not. So you and Lancer will have to get along. The only exception to this is when someone attacks us, in which case you are free to strangle them barehanded for all I care. The last rule is to keep Magic to a minimum. The last thing we need is for our neighbors to find out the house is full of magic users."

"No cooking unless you can do it safely, treat all magic users with civility, no fighting unless they come to us first, and no obvious signs of magic," she repeated.

"That's pretty much it. Oh, and watch out for Taiga. She tends to come over for breakfast and dinner, but she's the only normal person who bothers to come in regularly."

"And in case you happen to forget, we posted the rules just outside the kitchen," said Shiro helpfully.

Rider looked, and sure enough there was a poster board with the rules written in neat English letters...right above a repeat of the rules in kanji. It was well hidden by a very low level muggle repellant spell that any Magi or Wizard could see through with ease.

"Why did you come up with such odd rules anyway?"

"I made them up after Harry first came here and I ended up hosting debates on all forms of magic. I just added a few once Rin explained to us that the Grail War had started up again and I knew that somehow I would end up having Servants over for dinner as well," he said bluntly.

"And it doesn't bother you that your cousin is a wizard or that all these people are essentially crashing in your home?" she asked.

"Shiro's attitude towards people staying in his house is the same one I have towards my vault in England. I'm not using it aside from helping him pay the bills and helping Rin with her family magic, so why not help out a little? Hell, the only reason Bazett and Lancer stay here is because Shiro said they could as long as they contribute to our magic discussions that we have every week," said Harry.

"I am something of a dabbler myself. Can I join in?" asked Rider.

"The only people we ban from the discussions are people who aren't allowed in the house. Feel free to comment on anything or start a subject yourself," said Harry.

"It's true. I got into a hearty debate with Sirius over there over magical beverages that lasted for three hours," admitted Lancer.

Rider listened with interest. She might like it here...

* * *

Rin arrived the next night with someone who tensed as soon as he saw Rider and Lancer. She almost had to use a command spell to keep him from attacking the two. Instead she pointed to the poster board next to the kitchen and told him he wasn't allowed to do anything until he read and understood the rules.

An hour into dinner, Harry asked Archer if he was in the mood for a light bit of practice. To his surprised the heroic spirit accepted, provided it was just them.

"I find it interesting...that I don't recognize you from previous summonings," said Archer.

"Reoccurring summonings?" Harry asked.

"How did you know?"

"Lucky guess. If you kept being summoned again and again for the same wars, then chances are that I repeated the same bloody mistakes I made for years and years. The only difference is that I decided to take action and see if a woman everyone seemed to think was my aunt really was."

"I take it she wasn't?"

"My mother was adopted. Which made more sense than it didn't to be honest. Once I found out that I had a cousin which lived outside England, I was on the first plane I could find. After that all it took was acting like myself and things clicked into place."

"Why didn't he chase you out? If I remember right wizards and Magi hate each other."

"It helps we have similar mindsets. He has a 'helping others' mindset, I have a 'saving people' thing."

Archer paused in his shooting and looked at the kid in disbelief. While the kid wasn't half bad, hitting either the center target or close enough, he couldn't understand how the kid had managed to change things to the point that he was having trouble seeing how this war would play out.

"How bad?" he asked finally.

"I saved a girl a year younger than me from a Basilisk when I was twelve, saved my own godfather from dementors the year after that, and the year before I finally left England I participated in a tournament meant for people three years older and more experienced than me and won it along with a classmate, who I had to watch die simply because he was the spare."

Archer whistled. The kid definitely had bad luck...and when he thought about it, he could see why Shiro had clicked with him so easily. He was just as bad as Shiro was!

"So what is your name anyway?"

"Harry Potter. Why?"

Archer sputtered. This kid was _the_ Harry Potter?! He had seen him once or twice, older than he was now, in the Throne of Heroes! The kid acted as Caster, Saber, and Rider! He mostly got summoned as Caster, since he took the Mantle 'Master of Death'. Still, for Harry to be related to Shiro...

It seemed suicidal tendencies ran in the family. Who knew? Though now he was wondering if Harry's alter future would be summoned like Shiro's future self was. But really, what are the odds of that happening?

* * *

(Elsewhere in Fuyuki City)

He sneezed. Someone was talking about him, which was unusual.

"Something wrong Caster?" asked his Master.

"Nothing. Probably someone talking about me...which is odd come to think of it," said Caster.

Really, how the hell did this guy find a feather from the same phoenix his original wand came from? The last time he checked, Medea was summoned as Caster during the Fifth Grail War of Fuyuki.

Instead he got picked, which was beyond strange since half the time he spent the time talking with Arturia and Cu Chulainn and sparring with them.

(He learned later in life that his mother had been Irish by birth and had looked at the legends out of curiosity. He never did find his real cousin for some reason.)

Still, he couldn't complain. He remembered hearing about how badly Medea had screwed around as Caster during the fifth.

He still wished his master would let him wander around town though. Just because he wanted to find Lancer and get shitfaced drunk while singing raunchy bar songs didn't mean his Master had to anchor him to the temple with a bloody command!

At least he was able to tap into the leylines...

* * *

Archer wasn't surprised to find Shiro after school watching them. He was, however, surprised to find Assassin attacking him instead of Lancer like before. Rin once again healed the idiot...only this time she carried him home.

At least Arturia would be summoned properly this time around.

Three days later he was witnessed to something that had him wanting to bang his head against the wall.

Caster had come looking to fight Saber...and it wasn't Medea like he had assumed.

It was the Master of Death, Harry bloody Potter.

He wasn't the only one who stared when the second Caster saw Lancer, he grinned evilly and said "I've been looking for you, ya bloody sod! Do you know how hard it is to get shitfaced drunk with these wimpy modern idiots?"

"Caster, you bloody idiot! I didn't know you got summoned in this war!" said Lancer with glee. The Master of Death was the only person to match him while getting drunk.

Caster snorted.

"The Magus somehow got his hands on a feather that came from my original focus...or the phoenix itself. Either way he anchored me to his house to keep me from going out and getting drunk with the other Servants. You have no idea how hard it was to get him to let me out for a couple of hours."

Lancer gave Bazett puppy eyes, hoping she would let him go out and get drunk with Caster. She rolled her eyes and gave Rider a look.

"Can you keep these two morons from making fools of themselves or causing a scene?" she asked.

"Rider, could you?" asked Harry.

"...You're paying the bar tab," she said firmly to the two.

"Yes ma'am!" said Caster gleefully.

When the three Servants left, two chatting like old friends, Sirius looked at Archer who had a face like Shiro had slapped him silly with a fish.

"Okay, spill. You said you've been through this War before countless times. So why the hell is an older version of Harry walking around instead of some psychotic woman?" asked Sirius.

Archer gave into temptation and started banging his head against the wall.

"Why, why, WHY did it have to be _him_?! Medea was bad enough, but the Master of Death is a hundred times worse!" said Archer, looking upset.

"Uh...Archer?" said Harry confused.

"Archer, stop trying to give yourself a brain injury and explain!" said Rin.

Since Rin would most likely make a command if he didn't, he sat down looking miserable.

"Caster...well in the original war it was Medea. She turned the entire Ryuudou temple into one big boundary field and even summoned a lesser version of Assassin to protect her. But this version is a hundred times worse than Medea."

"What makes you say that? He looked like an older version of Harry. While his invisibility cloak looked a little strange..." said Sirius.

"He got his Heroic status defeating several dark lords after Voldemort...the problem is that afterwords he tended to get a bit... Well to be blunt he started to kill off the bad eggs in some rather painful and humiliating ways. When he reached the Throne of Heroes he would often wander off with the Hound of Ireland and the two would get shitfaced drunk and embarrass the hell out of everyone else."

Sirius and Remus looked at each other before saying "Just like James..."

Rin and Bazett on the other hand, paled and said "How embarrassing...?"

"His favorite way to kill Dark Lords became known as the Exploding Toilet death. It got so bad that the more...radical members...of the wizarding society started to use the woods instead of risking an outhouse or loo..."

Harry kept a straight face for all of ten seconds before he developed an evil grin. Suddenly he knew how to get back at Dumbledore for all the crap he put him through...


End file.
